Saint George's flag England (formerly the Kingdom of England up to its merger with Scotland in 1707, which created the Kingdom of Great Britain) is the largest and most densely populated of the nations that make up the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

England comprises most of the southern half of the island of Great Britain, bordered to the north by Scotland and to the west by Wales.

According to the 2001 census the population of England was 49,138,831.

The country of England (as distinct from the states and provinces which had occupied the same territory at earlier times) formed through the gradual merging of the Angle, Saxon and Jute kingdoms during the 7th to 9th centuries.

England, as a significant political entity, ceased to exist with the Act of Union with the Kingdom of Scotland in 1707, which created the Kingdom of Great Britain.

England comprises most of the southern two-thirds of the island of Great Britain, plus offshore islands of which the largest is the Isle of Wight.

www.ipedia.com /england.html (2321 words)

England(Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-06)

From the late 13th century, the neighbouring principality of Wales was joined to England, and gradually came to be a part of that kingdom for most legal purposes, although in the modern era it is more usually thought of as a separate nation (fielding, for example, its own athletic teams).

The history of England as an independent country stretches on through the middle ages and renaissance to the reign of Elizabeth I, often remembered as a golden age in its history, notable both for its culture and mercantile success.

England ceased to be an independent political entity with the Act of Union with the Kingdom of Scotland in 1707, which created the Kingdom of Great Britain.

England should not be confused with the United Kingdom or the island of Great Britain.

It is of interest to note that England is far from being an independent nation since it has no national government, has no currency of its own, has no armed forces, and is not represented in the Olympic Games.

England's five largest cities (in decreasing order of size) are; London, Birmingham, Liverpool, Sheffield and Leeds.

Regions of England - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia(Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-06)

Historically the primary subdivision of England was into counties, which still exist in modified form.

The Labour Government announced that it wished to increase the power of government at the regional level, as part of the "devolution" that led to elected assemblies in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, and part of the concept of regions in the EU.

The region (sometimes known as Government Office Region) is currently the highest level of local government in England.

The present policy of the UK Government is to increase the power of government at the regional level, as part of the "devolution" that led to elected assemblies in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, and part of the concept of regions in the EU.

The reference used here is the CIA World Fact Book, and even if I do not doubt that the facts are correct, my experience is that it can sometimes be structured in an archetypical way, which may lead to misinterpretation.

I am just surprised over the lack of structure for the articles on the subdivisons of England and the UK and this is what I'm trying to adress.

We also have a bunch of Ceremonial counties of England, which are the ones people use geographically today.

There are calls by some for an English Parliament but the current Labour government favours the establishment of regional governments, claiming that England is too large to be governed as a sub-state entity.

In some regions, notably the south-west and south-east there is little interest, but in the north of England there is some support.

Considerable disquiet was caused when changes were made to the system of counties in 1889.

Articles - Subdivisions of the United Kingdom(Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-06)

This structure was formed by the political union between the formerly separate kingdoms of England and Scotland, the principality of Wales and the province of Northern Ireland, each of which has a unique political status.

England and Wales are treated as a single entity for some purposes, principally that they share a legal system, while Scotland and Northern Ireland each have a separate legal system.

As a whole, executive government in Northern Ireland is currently administered by the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland and laws are made in the United Kingdom Parliament - known as "direct rule" in contrast to devolution.

England (formerly the Kingdom of England up to its merger with Scotland in 1707, which created the Kingdom of Great Britain) is the largest and most densely populated of the nations that make up the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

It was a slang term used by English soldiers in India, derived from a Hindustani phrase, bila yati, meaning "foreign" (especially European).

England is also sometimes referred to by its inhabitants as "this Green and Pleasant Land", after William Blake's poem Jerusalem.

In 1373 Edward III of England proclaimed "that the said town of Bristol withall be a County by itself and called the county of Bristol for ever", but maps usually instead show it as part of Gloucestershire, and as the city spilled south of the river, it took the county with it.

By the 14th Century Bristol was England's third-largest town (after London and York), with perhaps 15-20,000 inhabitants on the eve of the Black Death of 1348-49.

Renewed growth came with the 17th Century rise of England's American colonies and the rapid 18th Century expansion of England's part in the Atlantic trade in Africans taken for slavery in the Americas.

smartybrain.com /index.php/Bristol (1969 words)

Traditional_counties_of_England(Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-06)

The traditional counties of England are historic subdivisions of the country into around 40 regions.

After local government reform in the late 19th century, the traditional counties are no longer in general use for official geographic purposes (in favour of ceremonial counties or administrativecounties), but the system in use is partially based on them, and the postal counties often still follow them.

In southern England, they were subdivisions of the Kingdom of Wessex, and in many areas represented annexed, previously independent, kingdoms — such as Kent (from the Kingdom of Kent).